I really didn't intend to make a living based on my looks.

Monday, October 7.

Tangren Film & Television.

"Bang"

The office door was flung open, and the new assistant rushed in, shouting, "Boss! We broke 2! We broke 2!"

Cai Yinong was sitting at the tea table, calmly making himself a cup of Kung Fu tea...

"What's the excitement? Breaking two seconds isn't normal, is it?"

The assistant looked at his boss with admiration.

He truly is a big shot in the entertainment industry.

That composure, that unhurried demeanor, is absolutely impeccable.

The viewership rating broke 2%, ranking first in its time slot nationwide. If it were any other boss, they would have jumped up and started making phone calls and posting on social media by now, but their CEO, Ms. Cai, was still brewing Kung Fu tea.

The assistant's admiration was like a never-ending river.

"What are the specific figures?"

The assistant suddenly realized, "During the first two nights of its premiere, 'Xuan-Yuan Sword' achieved an average viewership rating of 1.86% and a market share of 7.98% in 32 cities across CMS, ranking first nationwide in its time slot! The highest single-episode rating on the premiere night was 1.94%, and the second episode's rating broke 2, reaching 2.2%, surpassing 'If You Are the One' in the same time slot."

"Sohu Video's cumulative viewership exceeded 2500 million in two days, and its search volume on Baidu reached 281 million, setting a new record for TV drama searches!"

She finished reading in one breath, looked up at Cai Yinong, hoping for even the slightest smile on the boss's face.

Absolutely none...

"A great start. Notify Director Li to forward this data to Brother Hu and Shishi."

"By the way, how's the online reaction?"

The assistant hesitated slightly this time, and her voice wasn't as loud as before.

"Game fans are being quite harsh, saying the storyline is vastly different from the game, and the special effects are also being criticized through screenshots..."

After talking on and off for a long time, the gist of it was a barrage of criticism.

"So what if they criticize me?" Cai Yinong remained calm and composed. "The ratings will teach them a lesson."

"We need to adjust the focus of our subsequent promotional efforts. We can't let the word-of-mouth continue to be a problem. Contact a few media outlets and produce in-depth articles that highlight Hu Ge and Liu Shishi's acting skills, diverting the attention away from the special effects. Subsequent materials should focus on ensemble performances, also leveraging the popularity of newcomers like Jiang Jinfu and Gulnazar."

She wasn't surprised by this. When "Chinese Paladin 1" aired, it was also criticized, but it later became a classic.

The fact that someone is complaining means that someone is watching, and watching carefully.

What we should really worry about isn't being criticized, but not being watched.

The assistant nodded and made a note of it.

Cai Yinong put down his teacup, as if suddenly remembering something: "How are the stats for that 'Swords of Legends'?"

"Yesterday, Shandong TV premiered two episodes, with an average viewership of 0.7% in 32 cities across CMS, ranking sixth in its time slot."

"Penguin Video's first-day viewership just exceeded ten million."

Cai Yinong was relieved.

0.7%, which is actually quite high compared to the usual average on Shandong TV.

Yang Mi's popularity alone is enough to support a basic fanbase.

But that's how it is.

This drama has already played its biggest cards, but the premiere failed to be a hit, which means that there's nothing new to add after the initial release. If it wants to continue to grow, it needs to rely on the content itself to slowly improve.

That's difficult!

The assistant hesitated for a moment before speaking: "Mr. Cai, there's something worth noting. Although the number of comments on the 'Gu Jian' website isn't as high as ours, the percentage of positive reviews is very high..."

"Good word-of-mouth doesn't necessarily translate into sales figures. I've seen plenty of things that are critically acclaimed but don't sell well."

"There are a lot of people waiting to see what happens. They want to see what happens to Tang Ren, and they want to see what happens to me and Yang Mi."

"It's a joke! What do these media outlets take me for? They just randomly pick people to compare me to? They don't even deserve it!"

"Our Tang Ren is the true originator of fantasy dramas!"

"Let me know if there are any updates on Gujian. Just keep an eye on it, don't worry too much about it."

The assistant nodded, closed the folder, and left.

Cai Yinong sat down again and flipped through the next document.

0.7% vs. 1.94%

The middle part consists of twelve 0.1% values.

Each 0.1% viewership rating translates to hundreds of thousands of actual viewers.

Getting hundreds of thousands of people to switch channels requires a catalyst!

Whether it's word-of-mouth spreading, trending topics going viral, or a memorable scene breaking out of the public eye, it's not something that can be achieved with just a trailer and a few press releases.

Yang Mi? Jiang Chen? Zheng Wu?

It's all a joke...

……

On July 9th, entertainment media outlets reached a fever pitch.

Southern Metropolis Entertainment Weekly published a news flash.

"Xuan-Yuan Sword" surpasses 2% in ratings, leading the summer season; Tang Ren once again proves his dominance in the fantasy genre.

"1.94% versus 0.7%—this isn't just a difference, it's a chasm. Tang Ren has proven with sixteen years of experience in the fantasy genre that not everyone can make fantasy dramas. No matter how exquisite the trailer for 'Swords of Legends' is, if the platform can't support it, it's all just castles in the air."

Sina Entertainment followed up: "The premiere of 'Swords of Legends' was met with a lukewarm reception; Yang Mi's solo performance was no match for the star-studded cast of 'Tang Ren'."

Sohu Entertainment went even further: "Summer blockbuster debate: Xuanyuan Sword is a nuclear weapon, Gujian is fireworks."

The Beijing News's entertainment commentary was the most scathing: "Judging from the data, Gu Jian Qi Tan doesn't need to be compared with Xuan Yuan Jian."

The internet was in an uproar, with many online trolls stirring up trouble.

"How many people were fooled by the trailer for 'Gu Jian'? A serious drama production team making a fantasy film? It only got 0.7% rating, what a joke."

"Yang Mi's popularity has reached its limit; she can't boost the popularity of newcomers."

"Who is Jiang Chen? He is indeed handsome! But compared to Jiang Jinfu, he's still far inferior..."

"Tang Ren's 'Scarlet Heart' made Liu Shishi a star! Is it possible they're going to promote two newcomers born in the 90s, Na Zha and Jiang Jinfu, this time?"

"Tang Ren is awesome! Lao Cai is awesome!"

……

Meanwhile, the conference room at Zhengwu Sunshine was filled with smoke.

Hou Hongliang, Kong Sheng, Li Xue, Jiang Daqiang, Sun Molong, Jian Chuanhe, Zhang Kaizhou and other middle-aged and elderly men were staring blankly at the young figure giving a passionate speech in the center of the conference room.

"So, isn't it normal for the initial ratings to be low?"

He snapped the projector on, revealing six large, crookedly handwritten characters.

Content is king!

"0.7%, I know what you're thinking. But I want to tell you, I'm very satisfied with this figure."

"Shandong TV, ranked eighth among provincial satellite channels, usually has a prime-time rating of around 0.3%. Our premiere achieved a 0.7% rating, more than double. What does this show? It shows that our trailers and promotions were effective."

"Director Kong, you don't need to lose sleep!"

Kong Sheng: "??????"

He didn't...

"Comrades, this is the first show produced since the founding of Zhengwu Sunshine. Cheer up! It's only been airing for a day, what can 0.7% prove? Nothing. Time will tell. What is the corporate spirit of Zhengwu Sunshine?"

? ? ? ? ?

The high-ranking officials in the audience were completely dumbfounded!

What the heck?

Corporate spirit?

Their company has only been established for a few months, and they haven't even printed their company manual yet.

Hou Hongliang was also dumbfounded. Did he think he was the head of Zhengwu Sect?

What does this have to do with you?!